Politics on the Hudson

Former Mount Vernon mayor Ernest Davis said he had no part in granting $10,000 and $5,000 raises for six employees in the city’s Law Department.

In a story about raises for governmental appointees that ran Sunday, chief of staff Yolanda Robinson said raises for the department were negotiated in the former administration and took effect in 2008. But Davis said he didn’t approve the raises and wouldn’t have supported anything other than equal raises for his staff across all departments.

Robinson stood by her comments and faxed a copy of a letter to back her claim. In the Dec. 18, 2007 letter, a member of the legal team asked Davis for raises based on the employees’ long hours and hard work, and the salary of their counterparts in the county. The letter shows that conversation took place under Davis, but isn’t proof that raises were settled under the former mayor. The City Council approved the raises in January, but it’s still unclear which mayor put the legislation on the table.

Mount Vernon City Court Judge Brenda Dowery Rodriquez made her retirement official today. After months of speculation, the 62-year-old senior judge has announced she will step down from the bench, effective Feb. 4.

Dowery Rodriquez was first appointed as an associate judge of Mount Vernon City Court in 1986. After that, she won two 10-year terms as senior judge.

The judge is one year shy of completing her second 10-year term and Mayor Clinton Young will appoint her replacement. City Council President Loretta Hottinger said today she is interested in the seat. Corporation Counsel Helen Blackwood has also been talked about as a possible successor, but hasn’t confirmed.

Mount Vernon Mayor Clinton Young got an earful from the public recently when he pitched an $87.4 million budget that included a 13.2 percent tax increase for city residents.

This week, Young said he made a “rookie mistake” releasing a budget that he said was not a finished product. He added, “I won’t do that again.” From the get-go, Young said the budget was a working document and that he didn’t intend to have a tax increase that high.

The budget has since been revised and calls for a 5.71 percent tax increase and $86.4 million in spending. There are no planned layoffs, although funding for two vacant positions was cut. The budget was approved by the Board of Estimate and Contract Monday and now goes before the City Council. The council can further cut the budget, but can’t add to it. See the full story about the revised budget here.

Mount Vernon Mayor Clinton Young handed out a written statement to city residents and press at a hearing last night for the 2009 budget, pledging to bring down total spending before the budget is passed. The $87.4 million spending plan is up $3.5 million from this year, largely due to an increase in salaries for city employees, and would mean a 13.2 percent increase in taxes.

Here’s the full statement:

“Heading into tonight’s Board of Estimate & Contract Public Hearing on the 2009 Proposed Budget, I want to send a clear message for the coming year, “Restore, Restructure, Rebuild.”

There is no denying that our country is experiencing difficult economic times. Our city has bore a fair share of that burden, having seen record-high foreclosures, tumbling property values, and increased unemployment.

When I gave my first State of the City Address, I promised that I would not sugar-coat and run from any of the issues facing this city. I could never say that everything is great, when you and I both know that it is not. When I took office in January, I inherited a city whose infrastructure was crumbling beneath our feet: our buildings had been in desperate need of repair, our garbage trucks had been rotting away for years, and our firehouses had been declared unsafe to be inhabited. Now is the time to draw a line in the sand. Now is the time to reinvest into our city’s future and restore the basic services this city needs to provide.

Mayor Clinton Young and representatives from Mount Vernon Hospital will talk about breast cancer prevention and awareness at a press conference this morning at City Hall.

The hospital will highlight programs that if offers, including semi-monthly, free mammograms for uninsured women. The hospital also sponsors the “Look Good…Feel Better” program which helps improve the self-image, appearance, and quality of life of people undergoing cancer treatment.

The press conference, held during Breast Cancer Awareness Month, starts at 11 a.m. at City Hall, 1 Roosevelt Square. For information about the hospital’s breast cancer programs, call (914) 361-6195.

Local supporters of Barack Obama are doing their part to sway voters in a key battleground state. Volunteers for the Coalition for Barack Obama will board buses from Mount Vernon to Scranton, Pennsylvania to go door to door for their man on Oct. 18 and 25.

Mount Vernon “town leader” for the coalition, Stephanie Vasquez, said volunteers will report to the Scranton campaign office and then fan out in different neighborhoods. There, they will talk to people about Obama’s campaign and poll them on their opinions about Obama and the issues.

There are still bus seats available on both dates for those who want to volunteer. The fare is $45. The buses leave Mount Vernon at 6:30 and will stop to pick up passengers at 7:30 in Chappaqua. Participants must arrive a half-hour early. To sign up or for more information, call Stephanie Vasquez at 413-1787.

The Mount Vernon Democratic City Committee will hold a debate party tonight at its headquarters at 1 Park Ave. to watch the two presidential contenders face off in their third and final debate. Tonight’s debate between Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain  will focus on economic policy and domestic issues. It takes place at Hofstra University in Long Island.

Doors open for the debate watch party at 8 p.m. and the debate starts at 9. The event is open to the public.

The Democratic City Committee has hosted a number of events to rally support for Obama including voter registration drives, a “Tri-state Rally For Change” in front of City Hall, and previous debate watch parties.

Call the Democratic Committee at 667-7300 for more info.

The Mount Vernon Democratic City Committee will hold a debate party tonight at its headquarters at 1 Park Ave. to watch the two presidential contenders take the stage in a town hall-style forum. Doors open at 8 p.m. and the debate starts at 9. The event is open to the public.

The committee has hosted a number of events to rally support for Obama including voter registration drives and a “Tri-state Rally For Change” that was held last Saturday. Devereaux Cannick, chairman of the Mount Vernon Democratic City Committee, said more than 500 Mount Vernon residents registered to vote in the last few weeks.

Call the Democratic Committee at 667-7300 for more info.

Mount Vernon’s Urban Renewal Agency allegedly failed to pay thousands of dollars in unemployment insurance this year and last. The state Department of Labor sued the agency, and got a judgement in its favor stating the agency owed $270 for lack of payment in 2007 and $7,300 this year. With interest, the agency must pay more than $7,800 to the state.

The troubled agency has been under federal investigation since a 2006 audit revealed the city overbilled the Section 8 housing program by $1.7 million.